Athletics to Analytics: Former Olympian Dariia Nedashkovska’s Path to IT Success

Dariia Nedashkovska is a Lead Software Testing Engineer at EPAM. She’s also a former Olympic fencer with many athletic accolades and a degree in economic cybernetics. 

Identifying a passion                    

Dariia’s lifelong participation in sports began with rhythmic gymnastics in her childhood. Following in her mother’s footsteps, she naturally transitioned from gymnastics to fencing. “My mother and another athlete started a gym where we lived in Netishyn. She was a foil fencing coach and asked if I wanted to come practice with her.” As the two trained together, Dariia’s mother shared her knowledge and experience.

Dariia admits it was not a smooth beginning. “Fencing requires huge physical effort,” she says, explaining the unique physical and mental strength fencing requires. “It ranks second only to boxing in terms of physical exertion, and mentally, it is ranked just behind chess. I was a small girl, not strong or powerful. After the first year, my mother suggested I quit.”

Dariia persisted. She focused on improving and dreamed of winning Olympic medals. Soon, she began competing in fencing competitions in Ukraine—and won. As she gained confidence and skills, she trained under Valeriy Shturbabin, who later became the esteemed saber fencer and head coach of the Ukrainian national team.

In May 1999, Dariia competed with a saber in the Junior and Cadet World Championships in Dijon, France. At just 14 years old, she was the first female from Ukraine to compete at this level. “I didn’t win a medal at that competition,” she says, “but being the first athlete from Ukraine to compete in this category was a victory.”

Dual Disciplines

From a young age, Dariia was more than an athlete. “Fencing was my passion, and I fell in love with it from the day I entered the gym. But I also loved mathematics,” says Dariia.

In 2001, university students had two common paths: economics and law. Dariia’s aptitude in mathematics made economic cybernetics a good fit. “In economic cybernetics, economics and mathematics intersect to predict processes and trends,” explains Dariia.

Dariia pursued her education in tandem with her Olympic training. “I attended lectures and passed exams during the day, and in the evening, I fenced in the gym. I postponed one of my exams so I could participate in my first Olympic Games. I went to Greece with my classmates' notes and prepared for upcoming exams between training sessions in the Olympic Village.”

At the Athens Olympic Games 2004, Dariia was the first female saber fencer from Ukraine. “It was an honor, but also an overwhelming amount of pressure,” she says. “But the experience I gained was valuable.” She remembers participating in the opening ceremony and knowing that all eyes worldwide were on her. “It was truly awe-inspiring — it gave me chills,” she adds.

The IT Career Path

Dariia’s shift to an IT career happened gradually after she was forced to leave fencing due to a shoulder injury.

“I served as the press secretary for the Ukrainian Fencing Federation for seven years, and one of my first IT roles was to improve their website. I developed a program for automatically calculating the athletes’ rankings.” Later, she took part in developing the website of the International Fencing Federation and combined the roles of tester and business analyst. Also, she worked as a tester and team leader at a global technology company.

Dariia was referred to EPAM and joined the QA team in 2019. “I think it was the fastest I have ever been offered a job,” Dariia says. “I applied and was almost immediately contacted for an interview. After my last interview, it was just a few hours before a People Partner called, and I got the job.” Now, Dariia combines the resource manager, testing team lead and project coordinator positions. Dariia understands the importance of ensuring employees feel valued. “EPAM has a great resource management system, it’s thoughtfully designed,” says Dariia. “In past jobs, ending a project often meant searching for new opportunities on your own, but at EPAM, resource managers help you find work. Even during periods without projects, everyone treats one another respectfully,” shares Dariia. 

During her time at EPAM, Dariia gained a new perspective on her role. She completed training at our EPAM School, which prepares quality architects and QA managers. “Every engineer should engage with this course, even if you don’t want to be a quality manager,” she says. “You learn to view testing differently and see more from the client’s perspective. Just meeting project requirements doesn’t always satisfy the goals of the client. QA school helps with that.”

Life Today

Though now immersed in IT, Dariia stays connected to the fencing world. In addition to supporting friends who are still competing—like the legendary Olga Kharlan, with whom Dariia competed in one team—she served as one of two commentators for the Ukrainian broadcast of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“I started commenting on the Olympics in 2008 after my injury,” says Dariia. “I was invited to comment as someone who understood fencing. My main goal is to explain to viewers in simple words what exactly is happening on the fencing piste and popularize fencing.”

Her advice to others: Never give up, no matter what happens. “Never give up, no matter what happens. I am sure that if you fight and do not give up, you can solve all problems and achieve success in any business. My example is proof of this.  “After all, I didn't lose heart even when I got injured and had to quit fencing. I started exploring different fields and eventually ended up in IT.”

If you’re interested in joining our team at EPAM, please view our open roles here: https://www.epam.com/careers. Employees can upskill, learn and grow their careers, following a variety of career paths and embracing their natural talents and interests.